Rep. Gutierrez arrested outside White House during protest

[alp227]

Source: The Washington Post

For the second time in as many years, Rep. Luis V. Gutierrez was arrested Tuesday for demonstrating outside the White House against President Obama’s record on immigration reform, his spokesman said.

Gutierrez (D-Ill.) had been attending a rally of more than 1,000 Latino civil rights activists in Lafayette Square, across from the White House. He was among a dozen protesters who broke off from the crowd and sat down next to the White House’s perimeter security fence, said Douglas Rivlin, Gutierrez’s spokesman.

U.S. Park Police asked the group to leave, but the protesters refused and all 12 in the group were arrested, Rivlin said.

In a statement released by his office after the arrest, Gutierrez said: “The President says Republicans are blocking immigration reform and he’s right, but it doesn’t get him off the hook.”

Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2011/07/26/gIQAzufybI_story.html

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As a legislator, Gutierrez can do way more than just protesting; I wonder if it's worth being arrested. At least it wasn't an actual undocumented teenager who could benefit from the DREAM Act getting arrested and possibly handed over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The CBO has projected that the act would reduce the deficit by nearly a billion in 10 years.

[Indykatie]

1. Pity That Pres. Obama Couldn't Fix Everything in 2 1/2 Years

We all want so much and it seems we all want it now. Republicans blocking legislation and yet we have our own party attacking the president over the lack of progress on the immigration matter.

[tblue]

4. Yeah. Pity you assume he'll have 5 1/2 mote years. There is no guarantee.

The time to act is now. Actually, the time was right after his inauguration, when he had enormous stores of political capital. But that would've taken a leader instead of an arbittrator whose guiding principle is expediency.

[EFerrari]

8. As they should be. Roundups have skyrocketed under Obama,

his policy is much more aggressive than Bush's was.

Pity Obama's behavior doesn't comport with his rhetoric on immigration.

[No Elephants]

10. Self delete.

[frylock]

17. the poor little feller

[AlphaCentauri]

2. I wonder how many legislators would like to get arrested for their principles n/t

[Angry Dragon]

7. Not many have any ......... so not an issue

[midnight]

3. This issue breaks my heart.... We need to let these families

stay together.... We can at least do this. Go after the Corporations for slavery.... I wonder how much revenue could be collected that way.... The reason the Republicans are blocking immigration reform is because they live off of slave labor....

[madrchsod]

5. mr gutierrez is a heavy weight in chicago politics.....

the latino population in chicago is`t going to be taken for granted anymore. he`s keeping his credibility by protesting and getting arrested.

[Lucinda]

6. We're talking about it because he got arrested.

I'd say that makes it worthwhile. :)

[No Elephants]

9. +1

[treestar]

11. President is for reform

Why doesn't this idiot go and protest outside some republican offices? They are the ones in the way of immigration reform. What a moron this guy is.

[EFerrari]

13. Then maybe the president should have a conversation with himself

about his abysmal escalation of deportations. No Republican is doing that, he is.

[treestar]

15. There he is just enforcing the law as it is

we did not like it when Bush ignored laws he did not like.

Again, the President is for reform. The Republicans are the blockage. Therefore protest outside Republicans' offices.

[EFerrari]

16. Nope, this is his policy carried out at his discretion. n/t

[treestar]

19. Look you may think the laws should be more liberal

But they have to be enforced. The administration does not have "discretion" to just not enforce them. To the extent they do, as no administration can enforce these laws 100%, see this:

http://www.aim.org/guest-column/23231/

[EFerrari]

20. Wrong as possible. And even more wrong to hang this on a legalism.

Barack Obama has said over and over again, he is only proceeding against criminal immigrants. And that has been untrue, every time he's said it.

[No Elephants]

12. People should be demonstrating in D.C. 24/7/365. And that wouldn't even be enough.

That's how screwn we are.

[wordpix]

18. people have to work (sometimes 2-3 jobs) to put food on the table---protesting all day not practical

[swilton]

14. Note: Someone else who walks the talk